DD Swallowed a Coin!

My cousin swallowed a quarter when he was 3 and he was just fine. He pooped it out and my aunt collected it. lol. She still has the quarter today!

Im sure it will pass through just fine. Keep an eye open for it. If it comes out as 2 nickles, then I'd worry :)

Pennies minted in the US after 1982 are almost all zinc, and can cause zinc toxicity if ingested. Same goes for Canadian pennies minted 1997- 2001 (as an emergency vet, I have to deal with this kind of thing all the time because of dogs swallowing the pennies). I'm not sure if the same thing applies to children, and if it were only a dime, what the potential issues would be. I would call your pediatrician just to be safe and find out. Or even consider bringing her in, just so maybe she will realize how dangerous it is to put things in her mouth that don't belong and doing so can result in a trip to the doctor's office!

yes, old pennies are a concern because of their makeup (was there lead inside? now I can't remember). My son swallowed a quarter if I remember correctly, and I did take him to the doctor, who said I could look for it to make sure it came out. I used a plastic fork for days in his diapers, which was rather unnecessary since it was all shiny and right on top. Didn't bother him coming out either, was not big deal. I would say watch for it, and if you don't see it after like 4 days then maybe take her to the doctor.

Probably not too concerned. My daughter did this at 3 1/2 - she new better but was apparently playing with the coin, putting it on her lips while she was laying down... and gulp! I called the doctor and they wanted to see her just to listen to her breathing and make sure it did sound stuck somewhere it shouldn't be, tha tshe hadn't aspirated it. After they saw her and said she was fine, they actually called that evening to say, just to be on the safe side, they wanted to do an x-ray to make sure it was essentially in her stomach and not lodged in her esophagous. It was, and they said it would pass because of the location. I assume it did with no problems.

My daughter gor pretty scared after she swallowed the coin, so that was pretty effective as a deterent, not to mention a trip to the doctor. You really need to reinforce this with your daughter as very dangerous.

I have heard some peopel say pennies can be toxic from certain periods of time, but now one ever mentioned that to me at the time.

I suggest calling your doctor about it. She is really too young to tell you if she has discomfort, etc. And

My daughter swallowed two pennies and a polly pocket shoe all before the age of three. Don't worry, she will pass it with no problem although you may not realize when she does it unless you are really looking :)!! If you can't get it out of your mind, I would call a nurse line or something, but a doctor is probably going to want to do an x-ray. I don't know what to tell you about not having her do it again. I just explained to mine that it really freaked me out when she did that, and next time she would lose her favorite toy for a while. She is almost 11 now, and as far as I know, she hasn't swallowed anything weird since.

See what the doctor says

Most children end up swallowing something and/or stuffing things up their noses, and as a result end up requiring a trip to the ER. I've been to the ER for each of my daughters for all different reasons, but all typical "kid" things.

It usually takes 24 hours to pass a coin, so if she doesn't pass it then she's going to need an X-Ray to determine where in her digestive tract it could have gotten stuck. I hope it's passed or that it passes soon, and a trip to the ER isn't necessary. If you haven't called your pediatrician already now would be a good time in case s/he has better advice for you. <3

Be very concerned! A 4-year-old I know was playing with his piggy bank over his head while he was lying in bed. Somehow, a quarter got loose and lodged in his throat. When the firefighter arrived, he held out four different coins and asked the boy if he knew which one it was that was in his throat. A quarter was it. Rushed to the emergency room in a neck brace for fear the quarter would lodge itself in his larynx and create a seal through which no oxygen could travel. The boy was lucky. They retrieved the quarter without surgery or even a tracheotomoy.

All that being said, I swallowed a dime and two nickels when I was a kid, and I'm (kind of) normal many years later.

I would take her to the dr. asap.
More likely than not, "talking to her" about it at 2 1/2 is not enough to stop the behavior. I would take other corrective measures to ensure she understood, and DEFINITELY not leave any coins or small objects anywhere within her reach for quite a while.

I've heard of other children doing this, and in some cases it was no big deal, in other cases BIG deal. Just depends on what happened, how much/many she swallowed, what ELSE she has swallowed, etc. You will have to watch her closely after the Dr. appt.
The part that's confusing, reading your story, is how did he know she swallowed it? Did he see her put it in her mouth? If so, how did she swallow it? He should have taken it out right away.

One last thought is... if she's always sucking on coins, maybe she is craving a mineral or something she isn't getting in her diet? I'd look into that a little bit too, because we often crave what we aren't getting enough of.

Good luck!

I heard if it's a quarter they have to remove it. Too big and can cause obstructions. I would still call the doctor, they will likely have you looking for it. Mine swallowed a polly pocket and I never did find it but likely the stomach acid dissolved the plastic.

I know you've already gotten the answers you were looking for but I just wanted to let you know that my little guy is not quite 2 and he swallowed a screw. It came out fine and caused no harm to him what so ever. I would suspect since a coin in much smoother your daughter should be fine. My son isn't potty trained so it actually made sifting through poo not too awful. At diaper change I would just smoosh the diaper, if I felt something hard I would look and see. I think it took 2 full days to come out.
Good Luck!
My son has gotten a lot better about not eating stuff after this incident, but I don't have any ideas other than just keep telling her stuff is yucky and can make her sick if it's not food.

I'd CALL the doctor just so you know what to do. In fact on the weekend you can probably call poison control and they will direct you. I think they will say to catch and check her bowel movements until you are sure it has passed.....so don't let her go to potty without you. You can avoid xrays, etc... later if you watch her and see that it "comes out."

Depending what the material (dime, verses penny, etc... is important). Call Poison Control so you can relax.